by Gary Weston
Deep Space Intelligence : Complete Series
Gary Weston
Copyright Gary Weston 2014
Ghosts of Nyzon Five
Chapter 1
Tagg Raven had seen and heard it all. Been there, done that, got the spacesuit. He also loved a challenge. As an agent for Deep Space Intelligence, not a lot fazed him. Ghosts, though, that was new even for him.
‘Nyzon Five is a shit-hole,’ he’d told his Boss. ‘A nothing planet in the middle of a nothing solar system. And it’s cold. You know I hate being cold.’
‘Nobody else available. You’re it. Oh, come on. Ghosts? That doesn’t light your fuse, Tagg?’
‘So send a priest or something. If I can’t smack it in the face or shoot it, I don’t want to know.’
‘You believe in ghosts?’
‘Only ones that haunt my nightmares. What’s the plan?’
Boss laughed. ‘You. You’re the plan. You’ll hook up with Trent Vickers, the Deputy Base Commander. Carver’s the main man, but Vickers will hook up with you. He’ll sort out a cover story for you. Just go with the flow.’
‘Ok. How about you, Boss. You believe in ghosts?’
‘Ones that commit murder? I don’t think so. But you send me its DNA and I might be convinced. Go. Miss that ship, you won’t get there for at least a couple of months. Call me when you get there.’
So. With a Boss sending him on a wild ghost chase, he caught the next available flight to Nyzon Five, a planet only good to come from, not to go to.
‘Buckle up. Buckle up. Landing, one minute. Welcome to Nyzon Five.’
Raven buckled up. He was indifferent about space travel, but hated landings. Statistically, more people died on landing than during the actual flights. The only thing to die of during the flight was boredom. He only truly relaxed once he had stepped out of the ship and had entered somewhere he could take his helmet off. This landing was a good one. He hadn’t died. Always a good sign.
‘You know where you have to go?’
The pilot was young and pretty, but the suit was reassuringly worn. To Raven, it meant she had a good idea about getting a ship from A to B. She was Karma Casey.
Raven smiled. Not something that came easy to him, and he’d been working on it for close to forty years. One day he would get it right.
‘Yes. No. That is, they have somebody waiting for me. If not, I’m screwed.’
Casey smiled. When she smiled, it was as natural as breathing, lit up entire rooms, melted men’s hearts.
‘I’m afraid you are on your own, then. My priority is the cargo. Passengers are not.’
Raven admired her honesty. But she was right. Payloads between planets were what it was all about, not bums on seats. He checked his helmet for air supply and temperature. Not that the air on Nyzon Five was bad. For oxygen level, it was not bad at all. The suit was for the temperature. Without it, bits would freeze and drop off very quickly.
‘Then I’ll be out of your hair. Maybe I’ll see you around…?’
‘Maybe. This trip is about goods off, goods on and away we go again. Not much time for socialising.’
‘Pity.’
Raven took the, “Sorry. Not interested” hint, gathered his hand luggage and stepped out onto the frozen ground of the planet. High up on the list of things Raven hated most, was being cold. The suit protected him from bone freezing death, but he could still see the cold. Snow swirled around him, biting winds dropping the outside temperature down to something off the scale. He had never set foot on this planet before in his life and he hated it already.
Through the blizzard came a vehicle. It hovered to his side and settled in the snow and a gull-winged door opened. The driver didn’t get out, but Raven climbed in, throwing his gear on the back seat. The door smoothly closed and the vehicle drove the three miles to the main Base, the driver saying nothing. The main airlock opened, they drove inside and the airlock closed behind them. The inner airlock door opened. A man was waiting. Raven grabbed his bags and carried them over to the man.
‘You are Professor Victor Lake,’ said the man, quietly. ‘Might as well start as we mean to go on. I’m Deputy Base Commander Trent Vickers. I wish you weren’t here.’
‘Nice to meet you too,’ said Lake, becoming one with his new name. It was as good as any. ‘Tell me I have a room?’
‘You have…a room,’ said Vickers. ‘This all your stuff?’
‘No. In the hold of the ship. Hopefully somebody can collect it once it’s been unloaded?’
Vickers said, ‘I’ll see what I can do. Follow me.’
Vickers led “Victor Lake” to a twenty seat open monorail that ran through the centre of the Base and dropped the bags on one of the seats before sitting on the double seat at the front. Controls couldn’t be more basic. Green go, red, stop. Vickers pushed go and the monorail hummed along at fifteen miles per hour.
The Base was standard design, living accommodation along one side, vegetation on the other. The design had been perfected one hundred and thirty years before and although being constantly improved, the basic concept was original and it worked. Lake had seen the layout on several planets before, and he found comfort in its familiarity.
After almost four miles, Vickers pushed stop and the vehicle gently halted. Vickers got out, grabbed a couple of bags and Lake did like-wise. A parrot landed on a nearby branch, eyed Lake suspiciously and said, ‘Here comes trouble. Here comes trouble.’ Then it flew off, disappearing into the trees.
Ignoring the bird, Vickers led Lake to the reserved quarters for the duration. Vickers touched a sensor pad with his thumb and the door slid open. Before it closed, Lake did the same with his own thumb and set the code, so that the lock only worked with his print now. The door closed behind him.
‘Before you say anything,’ said Vickers, ‘This is the best we could do at short notice,’
‘I suppose I could learn to sleep standing up,’ replied Lake. ‘Is this bug free? And by that I mean both kinds.’
Vickers grinned. ‘Yes and maybe. I can’t guarantee nothing will bite you, but it is a secure room. Your cover is visiting professor of entomology. Only Commander Carver and I know that. We have requested your visit because we are experiencing unpleasant mutations of some of our bugs. That is true, by the way, but I don’t actually expect you to fix the problem.’
‘Not a bad cover,’ said Lake. ‘To be honest, sorting out your little bug problem might be easier than getting rid of your ghost.’
There was an awkward silence, Vickers boring deep into Lake’s eyes. ‘So we understand each other, Professor Lake. Ghosts are not something I subscribe to. What we have here is cold blooded murder, and everyone scared of their own shadows. Go down the supernatural path, you’ll get lost for sure.’
‘I’ll bear that in mind.’
Vickers said, ‘Commander Carver called you in. I was against the idea. Calling in Deep Space Intelligence we could have done without, in my opinion. Having said that, now you’re here, you have my full support.’
‘Glad to hear it.’
‘I’ll let you settle in. You have enough provisions for the time being. I’ll catch up with you later.’
Lake said, ‘Thanks.’
Vickers gave Lake a final cold look before leaving the cramped quarters.
‘Nice to feel welcome,’ said Lake as the door closed.
Chapter 2
Small and powerful was good. It worked. Lake pulled the antenna from the tiny cube. The tip glowed red.
‘Hi, Boss. I’m Lake.’
‘Lake? That’ll do. As good as any. Plan?’
A pause. ‘Survive. I have a bad feeling about this one.’<
br />
‘You have a bad feeling about breathing. Hostile reaction so far?’
Lake said, ‘Call it muted. Frosty. Hey. Next assignment. Somewhere warm?’
‘You get what comes up. This ghost thing…’
Lake said, ‘People have died. Not nice. Not sure about ghosts or Vickers…’
‘Already?’
‘Early days. But no.’
Pause. ‘Don’t allow Vickers to distract you. Trust your gut. Bug man, right?’
‘Entomologist.’
‘Yeah, right. Bug man. You need technical info on bug related issues, just ask. You know all the implications on this one. The plug could be pulled on that planet or so the jungle drums have it.’
Lake said, ‘Last resorts. I’ll get back to you.’
Pause. ‘Lake. Had a call. Tilly. Should I..?’
Lake flared up. ‘Burn that bridge. I…I’ve too much going on. If she calls again, tell her….nothing.’
‘Lake…’
‘No. Let it be. I have to go.’
‘Have to, or want to?’
Lake sighed. ‘I could do without the Tilly thing for the time being. Hey. It’s been a long trip. I’ll turn in and get back to you when I have something.’
‘Ok. We’re round the clock for you. Good luck.’
‘Right. I’m turning in. Goodnight.’
Lake pushed the antenna back into the cube and let the thing be. He stripped off and lay back on his bed. He thought about Tilly. He could do without that. This assignment was weird. He’d done weird. He was weird. This case on the other hand, promised to be more than merely unusual. Then again, promises were made to be broken.
Chapter 3
It wouldn’t raise eyebrows for Deputy Commander Vickers to share a breakfast table with Professor Lake, entomologist. Lake ripped what passed for bread into pieces, spread something pale yellow onto it, took a tentative bite, didn’t dislike it. To add credence to his persona, Vickers pulled a bug in a plastic bag from his belt pouch and placed it on the table.
‘Like so many critters. Probably came here by accident as a stowaway on a ship. A troglonite beetle.’
Lake stared at the bug. Troglonites were fairly common on many planets. ‘The length of my hand? I don’t think so.’ Even he knew that much.
‘Mutation, possibly. Their bite is deadly to Humans, but it is rare for them to bite people. These do far more than just bite. They mainly hunt other insects. We’ve sprayed, of course…’
Lake pushed the dead bug away. ‘But came back worse than ever?’
‘We kill a nest, they come up with a new one. Their behaviour is changing, too.’
Lake sipped the artificial coffee, winced, and wondered why they couldn’t get the basics right.
‘Oh? Do I need to hear this?’
Vickers leaned back in his chair and shrugged. ‘You. Bug man, right? But you want to hear about Dando.’
Lake leaned forward. ‘Not here. The jungle?’
Vickers stood up. ‘You need a bio-suit. I have one that should fit. Follow me.’
A few others in the dining area watched Vickers with the visitor as the pair walk out. Once protected in the bio-suits, they walked across the path into the jungle which filled the rest of the Base. Paths led their way into it. It was as good a place as any. Apart from the bugs. Big, shiny, not nice to be around.
‘The usual electronic fields keep bugs and birds on this side of the Base,’ said Vickers.‘Just don’t go touching the bugs with your naked flesh, Professor Lake. Do not go near them without gloves. Don’t give them the chance to bite you. Toxic doesn’t come close. They normally wouldn’t bother people unless we annoy them. And yes, normal eradication protocol doesn’t do a whole lot to get rid of them. We kill off one nest, another springs up over night. I just wanted to show you this. This is a typical bug nest. A dead one.’
‘That is huge. Almost as tall as me.’
Vickers said, ‘Like I said. Possibly mutated. Either way, be careful in here.’
‘Shame,’ Lake picked up a dead bug. ‘They look quite pretty.’
Vickers said, ‘Pretty? A scientific term?’
Lake ignored that. ‘Did this creature dispose of the dead bodies?’
‘No. Yes. We don’t see how they could have killed a man the way these seem to have, but they sure mopped up afterwards. I mean, all we found was bone. Everything else, gone.’
‘Right,’ said Lake. ‘In your opinion, something else killed the victim. Then the bugs cleaned it all up.’
Vickers shuffled uncomfortably. ‘Forget the bugs. They’re just scavengers. What killed those poor people…’
‘Ghosts? At least your report suggested it. Really?’
Vickers had all the appearance of a man who wanted very much to be elsewhere.
‘Think what you like, Lake. In here. In this Base. Not of this or any other world, in some peoples opinion. I merely reported eye witness statements. The two who thought they saw something unusual, about the time of the dead bodies turning up. We also picked up something on the cameras. The trognolite beetles cleaned up. Nothing more.’
Lake said, ‘Dando. Tell me about him.’
‘Sam Dando worked in vehicle maintenance. Most jungle work is by volunteers and he did that, too.’ Vickers looked everywhere but at Lake. ‘A pal of mine. Yeah, he was with my wife. They were lovers. But who wouldn’t? She’s beautiful. I’m telling you all this, because your investigation will turn it up, anyway. I did not kill him, did not have him killed.’
‘Not unless you had three others killed in the same way just to put me off the scent.’
Vickers pulled up sharp. ‘I’m an open book. It’s your job to resolve this. Watch my lips, Lake. I did not kill Dando.’
‘So reassuring, Commander Vickers,’ said Lake, gently brushing a large blue butterfly off his shoulder. ‘But some people are so convinced something…a supernatural being killed the victims?’
Vickers paused, staring deep into Lake’s eyes. ‘It’s time you met the Commander and take a look at the footage we got. Prepare to have your whole world turned upside down.’
Chapter 4
‘Commander Carver is in conference at the moment,’ said the young man who was Carver’s P A. ‘He shouldn’t be much longer.
‘Ralph Miller?’ said Vickers’
The man nodded. ‘And not looking happy.’
‘To be expected. John. This is Professor Victor Lake. He’ll be working on our bug problem. Professor. This is John Nightly. He pretty much runs the place. See John before bothering the Commander. You’d most likely be redirected back to John in any case.’
‘Nice to meet you, John.’
‘Same. I sure hope you can get rid of those bugs for us. They give me the creeps.’
Lake smiled, almost made it. ‘I can only try.’
The door to Carver’s office swung open and an angry looking individual stormed out, ignored the three men and continued on his way.
‘Mr Happy, by the look of it,’ said Lake.
Carver stood at the open door of his office. ‘Professor Lake?’
‘Yes.’
‘You’d better come in. John. Coffee for three, please. The good stuff.’
‘Yes Sir.’
‘And hold all calls.’
Carver, Vickers and Lake settled in Carver’s office and waited until the coffee had been served and Nightly had gone back to his own desk.
‘Can’t recall when I had coffee this good,’ said Lake, savouring the beverage.
Carver said, ‘Don’t get used to it. Are you happy with your cover?’
‘Boss promised me all the info I need to sound convincing. They have a team actually working on the problem. It gives me a reason to go poking about.’
Vickers said, ‘Miller didn’t look too pleased.’
‘Do you blame him?’ Carver looked at Lake. ‘Miller has been in charge of the helium three extraction operations for nine years. Nearly two on this planet. I needn’t tell you w
hat a vital resource that is. Helium three is used for fuel in the plasma drives which make space flight viable and also power for the cities. We need this place to stay open.’
Lake said, ‘That’s what I can’t get my head around. With so much invested in this place, and with helium three such a valuable commodity, why are the Brass even thinking of closing it down?’
‘Politics, as much as anything,’ said Carver. ‘Interstellar World Counsel elections. Pigs with their snouts in the troughs. That and straight economics.’
Vickers said, ‘Like any other resource, helium three is finite. Eventually, the cost of extraction becomes too high, making it uneconomic. When that happens, we just pack our bags and find another big old rock to plunder.’
‘So what’s the problem?’
Carver said, ‘Nyzon Five is still viable. We have discovered three new deposits in the last year. Miller and his team bust a gut finding such deposits, in conditions most wouldn’t even think about. We can work this planet for at least another ten years.’
‘Hmm. That would frustrate the hell out of me, too,’ said Lake. ‘Surely Brass gave you reasons why they are so keen for you to move on?’
Carver shook his head. ‘Only vague comments, like, they make the decisions, we do as we’re told.’
‘Do you see our frustration, Lake,’ said Vickers. ‘We go to another planet, do we still get the run-around like we are getting here? Morale is rock bottom. Miller and many of the others threaten to quit. And most are wealthy enough to do just that. They earn big money doing what they do, and well deserved. Look around you. Not exactly much to spend it on.’
‘I get that,’ said Lake. ‘But, to be honest, none of this interests me much. Deep Space Intelligence is my reason to be here. Nothing else. You have something recorded, I understand?’
‘John Nightly suggested we might find something if we looked, which we did,’ said Carver. ‘You make your own mind up.’
Carver pressed a button and they watched the screen.
Chapter 5
It was a view of the jungle which filled half of the huge main Base with trees for fruit and to keep the air sweet. It was also a place of recreation, or at least used to be before the troglonite bugs took over. In the recording, seven men and women were on the central path between the accommodation and other utilitarian buildings, and the jungle edge. Vickers was the one without the bio-suit.